1. Field of the Invention
The invention pertains to the field of electrical connections between two mutually sealed environments. In particular, the invention relates to a sealed electrical line penetration through a housing wall made of plastic and to a method of producing a sealed electrical line penetration.
Motor vehicles increasingly require control electronics to be integrated in the engine or transmission. For this purpose, the control electronics that are mounted on a circuit carrier must be shielded from the oils used in engines and transmissions, because the oils contain chemically extremely aggressive additives. At the same time, however, electrical lines must be led through the shielding to allow components of an engine or a transmission to be electronically controlled.
Electrical line penetration assemblies of the type described herein may also be referred to as penetrators or conductor lead-throughs.
2. Description of the Related Art
A connector system that is suitable for use in the adverse automotive conditions is known from European patent EP 0 513 263 B1. There, a flexible film with electrical traces is led through between a closure part and a housing and establishes an electrical connection between a component in the interior of the housing and a component outside the housing. To accomplish sealing between the flexible film and the closure part or the housing, the flexible film must be surrounded by a seal. The sealing of the closure part with respect to the housing and the flexible film is relatively complex. In addition, the closure part and the housing must be fastened to each other in a defined way in order to bring about reliable sealing.
German published patent application DE 195 17 455 A1 discloses a gastight penetration for a conductor through a fastening part made of plastic, in which a shrink-fit tube is adhesively attached onto the conductor. The shrink-fit tube enters into a bond with the plastic of the fastening part. If a multiplicity of conductors are to be led through the fastening part, a multiplicity of conductors must be provided with shrink-fit tubes and fixed so they can be encapsulated in plastic. On account of being encapsulated in plastic, producing very high temperatures, the conductor has no insulation directly outside the housing. On account of the soft and elastic properties of a shrink-fit tube, a liquid-tight insulation cannot be accomplished.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,491,300 describes a penetrator housing through which flexible circuits (flat cable conductors) connect to a liquid-cooled supercomputer. The penetrator housing is fitted into the housing of the supercomputer.